Tag: apologetics

Karl Barth v. Keith Mathison on the Early Church & Sola Scriptura

German postage stamp honoring Karl Barth's 100th birthday

Did the early Christians believe in “sola Scriptura” (Scripture alone)? Or did they also believe in Apostolic Tradition? Keith Mathison, in his book “The Shape of Sola Scriptura,” claimed that the Catholic view wasn’t found in the first centuries of the Church, and that the earliest Church Fathers believed in sola Scriptura.

Mathison’s views are thoroughly debunked by (of all people) Karl Barth, the Reformed theologian Christianity Today called “the most important theologian of the twentieth century.” And Barth capably proved the Catholic Patristic case… even though he personally believed in sola Scriptura!

But Only God Can Forgive Sins!

Gebhard Fugel, Christ Heals the Sick (1885)

The Catholic Church teaches that the Apostles were given the ability to forgive penitents of their sins. One of the frequent objections to this is that “It is blasphemy! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” (Mark 2:7). Ironically, that objection originally comes from the Scribes and Pharisees, and Jesus’ response explains precisely how we can know that the Apostles were given authority to forgive sins.

How George Carlin Misunderstood Prayer

William Blake, Ancient of Days (1794)

The famous comedian George Carlin was a fervent atheist, and had a particular disdain for Christian prayer. He argued that it was arrogant of us to ask the God of the Universe for anything. He’s got a Divine plan, and then we come along to ask Him for special favors.

But Carlin also viewed prayer as either destructive or worthless. After all, God is the all-powerful, all-knowing, all-good God of the Universe, and He has a Divine Plan. If our prayers cause Him to change that plan, Carlin reasoned, we’re making things worse. If our prayers don’t cause Him to change His plans, what’s the point?

St. Peter, the Rock… and the Stumbling Block

Nicolas Poussin, The Sacrament of Ordination (Christ presenting the Keys to Saint Peter) (1630s)

Partly, this is a post about St. Peter, and why he’s the “Rock” in Matthew 16. Partly, it’s a post about the connection between the Cross and Jesus’ Messiahship. Mostly, though, it’s a post about Jesus Christ, and the continual need to grow in our understanding of Him.

Eastern Orthodoxy and Protestantism’s Infallibility Problem

Dionisius, Irene and Constantine at the Seventh Ecumenical Council (15th c.)

The “infallibility problem” in Eastern Orthodoxy is more similar to the infallibility problem in Protestantism than you may realize. In each case, rejection of centralized infallibility leaves them with fallible (and hazy) collections of infallible teachings.

Rembrandt and the Queen of Heaven

Rembrandt, Self-Portrait (1660)

Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669) is the greatest and most famous painter of the Dutch Golden Age. While he’s perhaps most famous for paintings like The Return of the Prodigal Son, he also is believed to have painted between 40-100 self-portraits (there’s a huge range in the number, because several of these might have been painted by his students). Many of these… Continue reading Rembrandt and the Queen of Heaven

Do Democratic Presidencies Reduce the Abortion Rate?

A popular progressive political argument is that the only truly pro-life choice is to vote Democratic. After all, the argument goes, even if said Democrats are vocally “pro-choice,” they’re also pro-social net, and the presence of a social net prevents women from feeling like they “need” abortion. During Republican administrations, in contrast. social nets get slashed, pregnant women feel more desperate (and less capable of caring for the children with which they’re pregnant), and abortion goes up. It’s an interesting theory, but is it true?